2003 News & Legislative Milestones
November 2—The Paw Project participates in "Spotlight Humane!," a fundraising and educational event sponsored by The HSUS Hollywood Office.
October 25-26—Dr. Jennifer Conrad speaks on "Building Coalitions between Attorneys and Veterinarians" at the 11th Annual Animal Law Conference in Portland, OR.
September 23—The San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously pass a resolution condemning declawing and calling for San Francisco veterinarians to abandon the practice. The story was reported in a San Francisco Chronicle article, "Supervisors condemn removal of cat claws." The resolution was introduced by Supervisor Gerardo Sandoval.
September 11—The Paw Project is invited to testify before the San Francisco Commission of Animal Control and Welfare. At the meeting, the Commissioners voted unanimously to recommend that the San Francisco Board of Supervisors ban declawing in San Francisco. The Commission is an advisory group, and it will be up the local legislators to pass the ordinance. The Commission also recommended a resolution condemning declawing and supporting the Koretz Anti-Declawing Bill, AB 395.
The move to ban declawing in San Francisco was spearheaded by Commissioner Susan Wheeler. The Paw Project's Director, Jennifer Conrad, DVM, was a featured speaker at the meeting and presented video and photos of declawing surgery and its complications. Other speakers supporting a ban included Pam Runquist of the Association of Veterinarians for Animal Rights (AVAR), Dr. Elliot Katz of In Defense of Animals (IDA), and representatives from Animal Protection Institute (API) and Fund for Animals.
SF veterinarian Dean Beyerinck from Irving Street Veterinary Hospital strongly supported a ban and told the Commission that Irving Street had a long-standing policy of not performing declawing or any other non-therapeutic procedure such as tail-docking or ear-cropping. Also supporting the bill were several animal behaviorists from SF/SPCA who testified that declawed cats that they encountered in the local shelters were disproportionately considered unadoptable due to behavior problems.
August 21—CBS Early Show resident veterinarian Debbye Turner explains why cats scratch and what you can do to stop this behavior. Turner says scratching is as natural as breathing for cats. Dr. Turner inexplicably and incorrectly states that the declaw ban in West Hollywood, CA was defeated.
August 1—The Paw Project and its efforts to enact anti-declaw legislation are reported by "Los Angeles Magazine" in an article titled, "Cat Fancy."
June 18—The Paw Project director, Dr Jennifer Conrad, discusses declawing on "Animal Planet Radio" with host Steve Dale.
May 27—The City Council of Malibu, CA votes to approve a resolution condemning the practice of declawing. The Council also voted for local veterinarians to require pet owners requesting declawing to view an informational video and sign a consent prior to the procedure. The measure was the result of efforts by Councilmember Joan House and The Paw Project.
May 26—The Paw Project's director, Dr Jennifer Conrad, is the subject of a "People" magazine article, "Cat Fight!"
May 6—CBS Evening News highlights successful effort to ban declawing in West Hollywood, CA.
April 29—AB 395, the California Anti-Declaw Bill, introduced by Assemblymember Paul Koretz and sponsored by The Paw Project, does not get sufficient votes to get out of committee. However, the bill is continued to the 2004 session when it will heard by the committee again.
April 26—"The New York Daily News" reports on the declawing issue in Kitty Claws for Concern by Amy Sacks.
April 7—The West Hollywood City Council, California, voted unanimously on Monday to pass an ordinance banning cat declawing. It is the first law of its kind ever enacted in North America.
At the beginning of the meeting, the Councilmembers moved the ordinance to their consent agenda, an indicator that the Council was inclined to favor the ordinance. There was a single voice of opposition from a representative of the California Veterinary Medical Association. He argued that the decision to declaw should be a matter to be decided between veterinarian and client and should not be a matter of law. Councilmembers Duran, Prang, and Heilman took exception to that position and said it was within the purview of government to enact anti-cruelty laws.
Several television crews were present to cover the story, which was portrayed very positively on the evening news. The LA Fox station presented it as a story about "animal protection." It was also covered by major tlevision networks including CBS, NBC, and UPN.
hopes other legislators will use this precedent to initiate legislation to end declawing in their communities. We are indebted to West Hollywood Councilmember John Duran and his Deputy, Hernan Molina whose tireless and determined efforts made this success possible.
February 14—California Assemblyman Paul Koretz (D-42nd District) introduces Assembly Bill (AB) 395 to prohibit declawing of cats. AB 395 will ban the inhumane surgical procedure. If AB 395 is enacted, it may be the nation's first state law to prohibit declawing. read the Fact Sheet for Assembly Bill 395»
January 25— The Paw Project's efforts to ban declawing in West Hollywood is reported in a "New York Times" article, "In West Hollywood, a Cat's Right to Scratch May Become a Matter of Law."
January 21—A resolution condemning the practice of declawing was passed by a 5-0 vote by the City Council of West Hollywood. The city attorney will now draft language for an ordinance to ban declawing in that city. The meeting was held at the West Hollywood Park Auditorium, 647 N. San Vicente Blvd (between Santa Monica Blvd and Melrose Ave) in West Hollywood at 6:30pm.
The Paw Project was helped in this endeavor by the efforts of Councilmember John Duran and Mr. Hernan Molina, Deputy to Mr. Duran. The proposed legislation was drafted by UCLA Law School Professor Taimie Bryant, PhD JD, attorney Orly Degani JD, and UCLA law student Vicki Steiner.
January 20— The Paw Project brought its anti-declawing message to television Monday evening at 4:30 and 11:00 PM on KCBS-TV, channel 2, in Los Angeles. It is the story of Aspen, the Canadian lynx whose paws were repaired last October.
January 17—West Hollywood's proposed declawing ban, sponsored by The Paw Project appears in an Associated Press story by Laura Wides. The story made the evening news on a number of news outlets, including KCBS-TV, KABC-TV, KTTV FOX 11, and KPCC 89.3 FM.
The Paw Project received assistance in obtaining media coverage for the declawing ban from PETA, particularly through the efforts of Jennifer McClure, Grassroots Liaison, Domestic Animal Issues & Abuse Department.
January 14—The proposed West Hollywood declawing ban, sponsored by The Paw Project and Councilmember John Duran, appears in a PETA press advisory.
January 9—The Paw Project veterinarian Dr. Jennifer Conrad is the subject of a newspaper article, "Veterinarian Campaigns Against Cruel Declawing," appearing in the "Malibu Surfside News."
2003 Events, Highlights & Milestones
December 9—Drs. Jennifer Conrad and Kirk Wendelburg repair the front paws of Kato, a six-year-old male African serval cat that that had been declawed when it was a cub. Kato lives at Nature of Wildworks in Topanga, CA and is the 26th animal treated by The Paw Project. His rear paws will also need surgical repair.
November 11—Drs. Jennifer Conrad and Kirk Wendelburg repair the left front paw of Louis, a four-year-old male African lion that had been declawed. Louis had osteomyelitis, a serious bone infection, as the result of the declawing and will need reparative surgery on his right front paw in the future. He is the 25th cat treated by The Paw Project.
October 14—Drs. Jennifer Conrad and Kirk Wendelburg repair the left front paw of Blue, a three-year-old male tiger. Like his brother, Czar, who had surgery on July 22, the damage done by the declawing procedure required such extensive repair that only one paw could treated without subjecting the cat to a dangerously prolonged anesthetic. Blue and Czar eventually will have reparative surgery on all four paws. The next surgery will take place in several months' time. Blue is the 24th animal treated by The Paw Project veterinarians.
October 14—The Paw Project gives an educational program on cat care and declawing to the seventh grade classes at Crossroads School in Santa Monica, CA.
October 5—The Paw Project distributes declawing information at the Best Friends Super Adoption Festival at LaBrea Tar Pits Park in Los Angeles, CA.
July 27—The Paw Project's anti-declawing billboard can now be seen from the eastbound 10 Fwy. at the Robertson exit in Culver City, California. Printing and the real estate was donated by one of the Paw Project's most generous donors, Regency Outdoor Advertising. World renowned nature photographer Thomas Mangelsen, Images of Nature, kindly allowed The Paw Project to reproduce his stunning photograph of a Bengal Tiger, "Light in the Forest," for its public awareness message.
July 22—Drs. Jennifer Conrad and Kirk Wendelburg repair the left front paw of Czar, a three-year-old male tiger in a four hour surgery. Usually two paws can be repaired, but the damage done by the declawing procedure (performed by an Oregon veterinarian) was so severe, the vets decided that it was not safe to subject the tiger to a longer anesthetic, which would have been necessary to treat the other front paw. The next surgery will take place in several months' time. Czar had been declawed as a cub for a small traveling circus before his lameness caused him to be abandoned to a sanctuary. Czar is the 23rd animal treated by The Paw Project veterinarians.
June 8—The Paw Project distributes declawing information at the Pet Adoption Fair in Westchester, CA. The event was sponsored by Best Friends.
May 31—A fundraiser, hosted by Wild Oats Natural Marketplace was held for the benefit of The Paw Project in Santa Monica, CA.
April 8—Drs. Jennifer Conrad and Kirk Wendelburg repair the front paws of Jay, a three-year-old male bobcat that had been declawed as a cub. Jay is the 22nd animal treated by The Paw Project veterinarians.
March 6—Drs. Jennifer Conrad and Kirk Wendelburg repair the front paws of Envy, a six-year-old male cougar that had been declawed when it was a cub. Envy is the 21st animal treated by The Paw Project.
February 22—The Paw Project and its director, Dr Jennifer Conrad, are voted to receive the "Advocate for Animal Rights Award" by students of Star Education, whose educational enrichment programs service over 1.5 million children annually.
January 16—Drs. Jennifer Conrad and Kirk Wendelburg repair the front paws of Blackie, an eight-year-old male black leopard that that had been declawed at age five months. Blackie is the 20th animal treated by The Paw Project veterinarians.